Illinois republicans come together at State Fair

Illinois Republicans were in Springfield Thursday for a meeting of party officials this morning and an afternoon rally at the State Fair. As IPR's Brian Mackey reports, GOP candidates say the party needs to come together in order to have any hope of breaking the Democratic Party's dominance in Illinois:

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The morning meeting of the Republican State Central Committee and County Chairmen was a lot more subdued than yesterday's comparable Democratic gathering. It also had a lot fewer people in attendance.

But party insiders say the GOP is fired up to take on Illinois Democrats: "Our base -- I'm seeing more enthusiasm today than I've seen in four years.”

Tim Sickmeyer is chairman of the Mason County Republicans. He says members of his party need to take a different approach in the 2014 elections than they did in 2010:

"The biggest problem we had four years ago was, a lot of people -- especially Downstate -- we all want to blame Chicago. But the bottom line is, is we've got to get out and vote."

Sickmeyer supports state Sen. Bill Brady, but also says he thinks the party can do well with the other candidates for governor, too. That includes state Sen. Kirk Dillard, state Treasurer Dan Rutherford, and businessman Bruce Rauner.